Sewing-awl and combination-tool.



T. HOLMES. SEWING AWL AND COMBINATION TOOL. APPLICATION FILED PEB.1B, 1908.

916,708. Patented Mar. 30, 1909.

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THOMAS HOLMES, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

SEWING-AWL AND COMBINATION-TOOL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented March 80, 1909.

Application filed February 18, 1908. Serial No. 416,561.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Tnonas HOLMES, a

which the following is a specification in such needle by a full and clear terms as will enable those skilled in the art to construct and use the same.

This invention relates to an awl that is used for the purpose of sewing heavy materials like leather or sail cloth, and its object is to make an awl that will make what is called'a lock stitch, similar to the stitch used on sewing machines where a bobbin is used.

An object of the invention is to make an awl that will feed the thread from the handle thereof in such a manner as to make it easy to regulate the tension of the thread in the pressure of the thumb on the ferrule of the handle of the awl.

Another object of the invention is to so place the eyes in the ferrule of the awl that the bobbin which carries the thread will not interfere with the thread in any way.

Another object of the invention is to provide a smooth chuck for holding the needle in order that the thread may not be injured by the same when it is being pulled back and forth through the material being sewed.

In the drawings in which the same numeral of reference is applied to the same parts throughout, Figure 1 is a side view of the awl complete, Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the awl, and Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view of the ferrule of the awl showing the bobbin in place.

The awl is provided with a common hol- .low handle 1 which has the cap 2 threaded thereon at 3, threads 4 being provided at the opposite end to hold the ferrule 7 The chuck 5 is secured in any suitable manner in the end of the handle, said chuck being split at the outerend to hold the needle 6. The ferrule 7 is large enough to hold a small bobbin 8 upon which is wound a quantity of thread. The ferrule -7 also closes the split end of the chuck and holds the needle in place when it is to be used, the conical end of the chuck being so steep as to give a very considerable pressure on the needle when the ferrule has been drawn down tight.

in order to use the needle for sewing purposes it is necessary to provide some means for alloaaing the thread to pass out from the bobbin, said means being the openings in the ferrule. The thread is passed out of the hole 12, back into the ferrule through the hole 11 and then. out through the hole 10 and then to the point of the needle. In order to provide means to hold the bobbin when the same is being wound with the thread the nipple 9 is secured thereto at one end thereof.

The operation of the awl is as follows: The person using the same threads the needle and then pushes the needle through the goods to be sewed, pulling the needle back a slight amount and pulling up enough of the thread to make the opposite side of the probable amount of stitching that he is to do, then the needle is pulled out of the cloth or material and another stitch is made, the needle then is pulled back enough to make a small loop and the loose end of the thread is passed through the loop by hand, the awl is then pulled out of the goods and by placing the thumb on the thread at the ferrule, and pulling straight out the thread may be drawn tight.

An advantage of this device is that it places the loose thread under the ball of the thumb in such a place as to make it very easy to control the tension of the thread, a thing not easy when the thread passes out of the handle of the awl in the palm. of the hand, and another feature of this device is that the thread passes out of the ferrule in such a manner as to be entirely free from the spool, and it is thus not liable to be out by the edges of the spool, nor is it liable to become tangled.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is as follows, modifications within the scope of the claim being reserved.

In a sewing awl, a handle, a needle chuck carried thereby, a s )ool carried by the needle chuck, and a ferrule adapted to tighten the chuck and cover the spool said ferrule having this l2tl1 day of February A. D. 1908, in the two holes in longitudinal alinement and a presence of the two subscribed Witnesses.

third hole approximately equidistant from I the other tWo holes and at substantially the THOMAS HOLMES 5 same distance therefrom as the first two I Nitnesses:

holes are from each other. T. HESS,

In testimony whereof I have set my hand l O. P. GRIFFIN. 

